Creative hunger. We’re in love with the Museum of Communication in Berlin and their current food and fashion exhibit. Move over, Gaga! This fella is donning some carb-inspired, pasta-and-ravioli threads. Yum.

short(er) balls: Both Caroline Wozniacki and Maria Sharapovavoiced their want for the WTA’s Season Ending Championships to move to London’s O2 Arena to join the men. The feasibility of such a thing happening? At least a few years off with contracts in place and the events still three weeks apart. | On USA Today, Bethanie Mattek-Sandswrites of her improved shoulder, taking care of her dog at home and the first-ever tennis camp she’s hosting in Arizona next month. | The only golf and tennis shop in downtown D.C., Drilling Tennis & Golf, is set to close after over 30 years in business. | Beware, Martina Hingis! Tory Burch says she plans to eventually design yoga, tennis and golf lines for women. | IMG stalwart Teddy Forstmann, “one of the most powerful men in sports, fashion and media,” according to The New York Post, died yesterday at the age of 71. He had brain cancer. | Growing in popularity in Australia? That’d be polo. | The world’s largest jacket? Half the size of a tennis court, y’all!

No more Oreos or Jamba Juice? Venus is aspiring to have a better diet in 2012. (AFP/Getty)

A tall order for the taller sister. Can the meat-and-potatoes Wimbledon-queen summon her past success as a leaner and greener player?

Older sister Venus, who’s claimed five titles at the All England Club, is having a health scare of her own after being diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune disease, which can lead to damage of the body’s vital organs. The illness forced her drop out of the US Open this year and has pushed meat out of her diet.

Despite the seriousness of the condition, Venus has been sporting a positive attitude and even healthier eating habits. She told reporters, “I changed my diet completely, so lots of vegetables. I [altered] my mind frame completely because I was the person who always ate their steak first and their salad second.”

Times are changing for the superstar, who said last year that she “eats to live and not lives to eat.” She continued talking foodie favorites, saying that she considered “beans and rice and blackened chicken” a top meal choice.

Venus discussed her new diet’s impact on the future. “My goal next year is to play a full schedule. It will take some work to get there, but I’m no stranger to hard work.”

This recalls the gourmet changes for 2011 ATP success stories Novak Djokovic, who’s claimed three major titles this year, and Andy Murray, who went on a 17-match winning spree after the US Open.

Djokovic’s decision to cut the carbohydrates to curb his Ciliac disease helped him achieve his best season ever, including the No. 1 ranking. Meanwhile, Murray discussed his own gourmet foray into becoming more fit. Before losing to Tomas Berdych in the Paris Masters, he said, “I think there’s a bit of difference in my approach to training and the diet; I feel pretty fresh.”

Not all’s well for the scrawny-looking Scot, who misses being able to pick up a menu and order what he wants. You can almost imagine his mouth watering when he said: “It can be quite frustrating when everyone else is dunking their bread in olive oil or smearing it in butter.”

Murray aside, Venus’ newfound form and fitness will no doubt have fans worldwide salivating for a dominating force in an otherwise floundering WTA. Petra Kvitova, 21, the current world No. 2 and winner of Wimbledon and the Season Ending Championships, might be the answer. She’s still, however, young and half-baked in terms of talent and poise.

It’s time for Venus to turn up the burners and bring back the motivation for which she’s known. Currently ranked No. 103, having only played a handful of tournaments this year, Venus quickly doused rumors of retirement.

“I love the game. The racket feels right in my hand and I’m planning on going right back to where I was at the top of the rankings in the singles and doubles.”

With Venus back in-shape and on form, the alarm bells should be sounding for the rest of the women’s tour. It’ll be tough to get out of the fire and back into the figurative frying pan that is professional tennis at her ripe age of 31. But if anyone can come back from adversity and succeed, it’s a Williams.

High stakes (steaks?), indeed.

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As the NYT‘s coverage of the U.S. Open goes into high gear, let’s not forget this one about where to grab food close to (but not on-) site: Mr. Critic points us to some awesome Chinese food in Flushing, including the recently opened Grand Restaurant. Sadly, Yelpers seem to have a different feeling about this place…

Bonus: Turns out, Mr. Critic wrote a more fleshed-out article that appeared on the website on August 26. Check out his non-Chinese recommendations here.

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The James Blake exhibition Tuesday night in Manhattan didn’t just feature top-level tennis, it also featured top-level eats. Bringing in chefs from around New York, the event had tasting and drinks from some of NYC’s most well known restaurants, including the pictured chocolate truffle tennis balls, prepared by Brian Young of Tavern on the Green. Those look delish!

John Mooney, chef at the Highland Manor, was the host chef of the event, which some exhibition-goers attended following the tennis Tuesday night. Later on in the night, Wyclef Jean took the stage at Pier 94 to perform.

While we’re still waiting from images from the Fila Fashion Show that was to feature Blake’s Thomas Reynolds line, there wasn’t too much creativity happening on court earlier in the evening, as the Bryan Brothers and Sam Querrey all sported the same adidas garb, and Blake followed suit in a white shirt and black shorts by Thomas Reynolds.

While we weren’t too keen on the gent’s lack of creativity on the court when it came to their apparel, we’re still hoping that we’ll find this Thomas Reynolds zip hoodie under the Christmas tree in a few weeks. Yum! See the Peacoat Hoodie after the jump.

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Nick’s away for well-deserved R&R over on the left coast this weekend, so it’ll be a fashion-heavy while I’m bloggin’ by my lonesome…

Good idea:Novak Djokovic opens up another NovakCafe, the Djokovic restaurant venture. The fourth branch is located near the MGM tennis court, the site of the Djokovic-owned Serbia Open. (Pics: interior and exterior — pretty cute, no?)

View: See pics from all four outposts of Novak Cafe at the restaurant’s official website.

Marko’s looking more delicious by the minute. So is the restaurant. If only we could get Nole to stick with adidas, and not switch over to K-Swiss like he’s been rumored to?

Bad idea: Where do we sign the petition TO NOT MAKE THIS HAPPEN? Nole just began to hit his mark with his Falcon line (above) — it was one of the U.S. Open’s best outfits, along with Rafa Nadal‘s checker cab polo. (Pics: Nole’s day and night kits) He should really hang around and give it time to grow. Perhaps K-Swiss has better shoes?

On the flip side, K-Swiss will get a benefit from having a top male player on their roster. (No offense, Tommy Haas.)

Scoreline: Currently ranked 11th in the world (oh, how the mighty have fallen!), Davydenko entered the combined tournament as the second seed. He was upset by James Blake 7-6 (3), 6-7 (2), 3-6 in the semis.

And speaking of white powder, Frenchman Richard Gasquet has now confirmed an initial report by L’Equipe that he tested positive for cocaine during a routine drug test at the Sony Ericsson Open in March. He claims innocence and has begun compiling evidence to prove this to the ITF and the World Doping Agency.

We’re hoping he’s innocent and that the case gets dropped; two years of Gasquet-less tennis would just be too much to handle.

Our senses can only take so much of Janko, Jelena, Nole, and Ana, so if you want to get your Serbian fix in other ways, how about trying out their food? My friend Jeff passed along these recipes (all of which he got from his grandmother). It’ll be a good way to expand your palate. Or to impress Janko with pancakes the morning after.

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Palechenkas

Ingredients: 1 C flour, 1 T sugar, 1 t salt, 4 eggs, 1/2 C milk

Directions: Mix flour, sugar and salt. Add eggs, one at a time and mix the batter until smooth. Slowly add the milk, a little a time. Mix after each addition, smoothing out the batter.

When the batter is thin enough, heat 1 T oil in a large skillet. Make sure the pan and oil are hot before adding any batter. Tilt the pan sideways as you start to pour batter into it, swirling the pan to get a thin layer coating the surface. When top side is just set, flip the crepe over, just browning the other side.

Directions: Combine rice, water and 1/2 t salt in pot. Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat and let steam for about 20 minutes. Core cabbage. Put in a large kettle of boiling water and separate leaves. Place in colander to drain. Trim the vein on the back of each leaf to make them easier to roll.

Place a few cabbage leaves on the bottom of a large pot. Place the rolled cabbage leaves on top of that. Dilute the tomato soup with 2 cans of water and mix well to avoid lumps. Pour over top of cabbage leaves. Cover pot and heat to build steam. Lower heat and simmer for an hour and a half.

Directions: Soften the cream cheese. Blend in the beaten eggs until the mixture is smooth. Add cottage cheese, shredded cheese, and spinach. Add the salt, sugar, and farina. Add enough milk to make the mixture easy to spread, but not too runny.

Melt 1/4 lb unsalted butter. Butter a 9×13 baking dish. Place 4 layers of phyllo on the bottom, spreading butter between each layer. Spread the filling on top of the phyllo and finish with 4 more layers and butter. Butter the top sheet of phyllo and prick it (to prevent bubbling).

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Watching the U.S. Open‘s Super Saturday from your couch isn’t the same was watching it live from the stands. You don’t feel the elecricity, you’re not amongst a crowd — it’s just different. But we figured you’d still like to be one with those lucky enough to be there. The ones cheering the players, knocking back Grey Goose cocktails, and chugging Heineken by the (portable) keg. So our bracketologist Chris gives you these recipes if you want to drink along with them:

Martini Hingis

2 oz. Gin

Dash of Extra Dry Vermouth

Can be served dirty, depending on the day. Shake it up; don’t stir. For variety, add a little Swiss Cocoa or throw in three olives stabbed (in the back) through a skewer. Be careful: too many of these and you’ll be calling your fellow players “half-men” or hurling vases across locker rooms.

Conchita Margarita

1 oz. Tequila

1 oz. Triple Sec

1 oz. Sweet & Sour Mix

For the terre battue effect, line the rim of the glass with red-colored salt. Having too many of these drinks in a row might make you see moonballs.

Sybille Bamma’ Slammer

1 part Amaretto

1 part Sloe Gin

1 part Southern Comfort

Splash of lemon juice

A perfect drink for the working mother.

Amanda Coetzerpolitan

1 part Cointreau

2 parts Vodka

Splash of cranberry juice

We’ve seen our fair share of greats get taken down by this sweet (yet extremely potent) cocktail.

Ai Sake-yama

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Mary Joe-jito

1 part Cuban Rum

3 parts Club Soda

½ part Sugar

lime juice

mint leaves

Exotic, perfect for working your tan under the Florida sun. Muddle the mint with the butt of a racquet for that extra tennis feel.

Side Car-illo

½ oz. Cointreau

½ tsp Lemon Juice

1 oz Brandy

3-4 Ice Cubes

It might be built like the more feminine Cosmopolitan, but having brandy in this cocktail gets you into the boys’ club.

Bloody Maria Sharapova

1 ½ ozs. Vodka

3 oz. Tomato Juice

1 dash Lemon Juice

½ tsp. Worcester Sauce

2-3 drops Tabasco Sauce

Comes in a tall, slim glass and is red all over. Sprinkle with Swarovski before serving at a press conference.

Roddick Fuel

1oz. Rumple Minse

1 oz. Bacardi 151 Rum

Combine and shoot at 145 mph.

Bud Collins

1 ½ ozs. Gin

Juice of 1 lemon

club soda

After a few of these, you’ll be seeing double paisley.

Sex on the Berdych

¾ oz. Chambord

¾ oz. Midori

2 oz. pineapple juice
splash of cranberry juice

Ahh, what better way to celebrate young love? Choose wisely at what events you order this drink. In bigger stages, it may disappoint without explanation.

Hot Toddy Martin

1 ½ ozs. Whiskey

1 cube of sugar

2 cloves

hot water

A drink for the salt-and-pepper set. Why else would one dilute a cocktail with water?

Rusty Nadal

1 oz. Scotch

1 oz. Drambuie

Perfect for drowning your sorrows during cold, Swiss nights (after being denied yet another French Open title). Conversely, can be used to toast stopping someone’s record-breaking clay streak.

TECH: MYiOTA announced that it will offer a service to mobile phone customers which will offer point-by-point updates at Wimbledon. I wonder how this will fare compared to what Alcatel did for the Mexican Open earlier this year. (via Pocket-lint)

TECH, pt. 2: The two show courts getting HawkEye technology will be rid of Cyclops. No longer will there be those annoying beeps that call out let cords. (via The Ocala Star-Banner)